Grinning, Tamreta shifted gears again. So the wolf owned a car, an interesting fact to be sure. But what model would attract a god who could appear and disappear at will? Yet another mystery to be explored. "I would love to see your car, though I can not see how it could compare to this beautiful piece of machinery that is before you," she joked. As if in response the truck wheezed again as it choked on some dust.
"And despite our talks, you have managed to misunderstand me again, Ferox." She shook her head in slight disappointment. Communication was an art that few, if any, mastered. "It was not your name that confuses me, nor is it that I think it does not fit you. For a god of nature it is only natural to be called the speaker of the wilds. Personally, I find your name quite suitable for you as it embodies what you do. Yet that is why I find it strange. Your name is more of a title than an actual name, and it would seem as if it came to be perhaps millenium after you first came into existence. To me that begged the question...what was your name before you were Locutus Ferox?"
"Before you gained all the titles you have today, what name did hold? As you have said, my studies into history are extensive and I readily listen to every grain of wisdom that presents itself to me. Because of this I have come to know that it is in our names that an old power will reside. In the legends knowing a being's true name gave you power over them. Perhaps that only applies to dragons and djinns, but is not a bit of who we are ingrained in our names. They are a gift given to us by those who came before." The reaper paused in silence, thinking back on the family she had not seen in so many years. More quietly she continued on. "I only wish to know one thing...why do you choose to treat your title as your name? Again, I do not mean any offense by asking this question."
She was becoming too comfortable around this wolf, and she knew it. Asking him for information about an impending task was acceptable, but asking for his companionship and his help was a different matter all together. Three requests, three chances that she could have gotten burned. She would have to be careful that she did not request his assistance again. No matter how menial the task might be to her it could be that one more would spell an end. More caution on her part would be wise when dealing with the wolf.
She checked through the rearview at the vines to make sure that there would be no damage to her vehicle or its cargo. Convinced that neither was likely she nodded her appreciation to the wolf. "Thank you," she said before lapsing into silence. The rest of the drive into the town was quiet except for the sounds the engine made as it finally rolled to a stop on the outskirts. Tamreta was simply glad that the noise her truck made had not been enough to wake any of the people. Sighing, she put the it into park then reached behind her in the backseat. Her hand rustled pages as she searched by feel for a particular notebook among the hundreds that were there. Even though it seemed impossible, it took only a minute for her to find it. Bringing her catch to her, the reaper opened the door and stepped outside, leaving the door open.
"You can choose to read some of my journals while I write if you wish," she offered. "The dawn is still a few hours away so it will help stave off the boredom. There are illustrations along with some of the passages, not that you would need such things what with your vast knowledge. Just the simple observations of a single reaper with no great social ranking."
Post by Locutus Ferox on Aug 9, 2011 2:04:54 GMT -5
The wolf could not help but break into chuckle at the question. How did it compare. Well to be sure, it couldn't store anywhere near as much cargo as this machine could, but it succeeded in many other areas. For instance it was more agile, able to round corners even it's normal brethren could not. It was reinforced, likely able to take a direct hit and keep rolling. It was fast, quieter when needed to be, didn't sputter, and handled bumps a lot better than this thing did. No in all accounts Locutus considered it a vast improvement.
Then came the reaper's reply to what he had said. That caused more perked brows. The creature boldly accused him of misunderstanding... and accused him wrongly. "My my, that's how it is, is it? I mistook what you meant hmmm? Dear Tamreta, I do so hate to inform you, but I am afraid you are quite incorrect. You see it is not I who misunderstood your question, but you who misunderstood my answer. Locutus Enim Ferox is indeed a title. But part of it is also my name. Something I would have thought my question would have pointed out. Which came first? The answer is the name. I have always been Locutus. Ferox came slightly later, and Enim was added even later than that. Later being a millennium as you stated. That much you were correct on."
"However, even before such things as "Latin" and "modern language" I have always been Locutus. Granted I went by another, "Older" name than that. Older only in that it was the name people knew me by first. Ijian. That was what most knew me by back then. However, as I said before, Locutus is both a name and a Latin word. Now, if you're done assuming things...." The wolf trailed off with a chuckle after the light rebuke for the incorrect assumption.
Unless Tamreta spoke up, the rest of the trip would be made in complete silence. It would continue until the vehicle was parked and the reaper stepped out. He took her up on the offer, snagging up a couple of the journals as he hopped out. As much as he had learned about this new world, he still was not aware of everything. It wasn't incredibly hard to find out this information, hells, a clairaudience on the right subject could give him a wealth of information, but he liked doing things the simple way. It gave him a view from both sides of the fence that way.
So he sat himself down and began to read the journals at his usual brief pace. Page flipping might have been a nightmare with only paws, a mouth and a fluffy tail... if he wasn't a deity and could just... flip them with a thought. To anyone who might have seen it, it would have looked like the wolf was simply playing with the journals.
Tamreta hung her head with a thoughtful smile on her lips. It had been a long time indeed since the last time she had been scolded, and it had been such a simple mistake. The rebuke just served to remind her that there were times even a reaper could become too hasty with their assumptions, but from that she had learned a valuable tidbit that not even the oldest of texts contained. The god of nature's first name. That was reward enough to make this trip worthwhile even if she failed to locate the missing object. Lack of communication could be a good tool after all, though she did prefer to convey her thoughts to and understand others properly. Very much so.
"Please accept my apology for my misunderstanding. It was a shortcoming on my part that I wish to correct." She gave the wolf a little bow and a smile. "I also thank you for explaining everything so simply to me. There are others who would have scolded without satisfying curiousity, some out of spite and some who forget during their rant. It is my pleasure to see that you are a being different from those."
Sitting down a little apart from the wolf, she propped her notebook against one knee and began searching for a blank page on which to write. About half of the book was filled with information concerning the object she was after. She made a notation on one page of the advice the god had given her about the nature of the object then moved on to write about the god himself with a pen she had pulled out of her coat. An old shaman had taught her the trick to joining the subconcious to a concious mind, and words flowed out as she went into a sort of trance that allowed her to access the tiniest details that would otherwise have been missed. Notes about personality, little quirks, and speech pattern filled page upon page as she recorded her encounter with the god from the moment she had first sensed him until the present.
When she finished, the reaper leaned back against the truck with a small sigh. There was still one more detail to add before she would consider her work for the night done, though. She looked over at the wolf, grinning at the sight of him bent over her journals. A perfect picture. She put the pen back in her coat and replaced it instead with a golden pencil. Her eyes darted up to analyze effects caused by lighting and movement as she sketched the wolf with skillful fluid strokes. At the end she added in the full moon to give her drawing a more eerie feeling. Finally done, she closed her notebook and tossed it into the truck through the still-open door.
Now that she had nothing to do, she became curious about what exactly the wolf was reading. She glanced at the journal covers for her answer. Those that sat by his side were bound in green leather with a faded gold mark up in the corner. China then, and the dragons there. The other one, the one that he was reading at the moment, was different. Light scores scarred the black cover. A quiet chuckle escaped Tamreta as she remembered what that book contained.
"The young vanara were quite reckless when I came to their village searching for a guide through the jungles of India. They were curious to say the least, and always brought me items to record and found as many adventures they could so that I could write about them. Always eager to read what I had written even if they could not understand the words," she told the wolf.
Post by Locutus Ferox on Aug 12, 2011 0:47:10 GMT -5
"Pride before the fall as they say."The deity added with a shrug of his shoulders before looking back as the vehicle came to that stop.
His attention turned to Tamreta as she began to write in her journal, one of his eyes turning to watch her as he read. His eyes scanned over words, examined pictures, and watched the reaper all a the same time. He knew quite well what she was writing about. Her task was but one of the things, the other was the deity.
A native tribe in India. That was only partially what he gleamed from the book. He did enjoy doing things the hard way, but sometimes a little help could go along way. His far eye, the one that wasn't watching Tamreta, started to change. The white of the eye went black and along his iris curving arcs traced from that outer eye towards the pupil. Eight of these arcs form around the iris, creating a near shutter like effect. The pupil begins to glow faintly as it scans over the book. Suddenly the pages spring to life within the view of that morphed eye. A deity level clairaudience. Before him images unfolded as physical and spiritual energies collided. Before him the story of the book was unfolded, the writing of it, and the writer.
The effect did numerous things. On one level it gave him a far more in depth understanding of the book, but it also opened a doorway into the reaper. One he had yet to step through but might in time. He closed his eyes, and took but a fraction of a moment to let it all gather, then he opened his unchanged eye, looking to Tamreta. "I imagine it was quite an experience to encounter one of the more... untouched civilizations."
For a brief second a feeling tingled in the reaper's bones, one that other beings would call an itch. Tamreta shivered to drive it away. The sense of strong powers started to become prickly if left alone too long, and she did not want a repeat of the experience. The feeling did give her one insight, though; the wolf had just used something. As her mind felt untouched she supposed it must have been to gain more information from the reading. Clairaudience then. Gods would have that ability even if any did.
"Yes, it was," she replied casually. "One can read all they want about a subject, but not until they experience the reality do they truly understand. So it was with the vanara. I had heard they were a curious folk just not how curious until my belongings were taken and given a thorough inspection." She smiled fondly. "They always returned them in good condition I am happy to say, with the exception of that book you are reading. The young ones looked so ashamed, the poor dears, and gave me one of my precious artifacts in apology for that."
She glanced slyly at the wolf. "Of course, for them to remain hidden so long when they always seem to stumble into trouble must mean they have some sort of protection. Perhaps the aid of a certain god to help them remain an untouched civilization. Then again, I could be wrong. The vanara are exceptionally clever beings."
Post by Locutus Ferox on Aug 20, 2011 3:45:00 GMT -5
The wolf kept his one eye trained upon the book. He spared Tamreta from it's gaze as he was not quite ready to use it to peer into the creature before him, and it would have been quite the draining process. Pulling all the information from a being at once, especially forcefully was quite a painful and exhausting processes for the one being read. For some lesser beings it was also fatal. Those with higher constitution often suffered nose, and possibly eye and ear bleeds as the blood vessels in their head sometimes popped. Weaker beings often suffered aneurisms. Locutus didn't want to see what a reaper would suffer, if anything.
His normal eye kept a watch on her however as he flipped a few more pages before moving onto another book. He couldn't help but chuckle at her words. "Curiosity is something that many beings seem to have in common. Heck, sometimes even us deities find something curious and often take interest in it. Though as I recall a saying that people have is, curiosity killed the cat, yes? I am sure they at least settled some of their interest at the same time, hmmm?"
His normal eye finally turned down to the book as she spoke again. This time the deity smirked inwardly at the subtle accusation that he had a hand in protecting the people, to which he neither confirmed nor denied. "The world works in mysterious ways Tamreta. Things that you least expect can always happen without anyone being the wiser."With that the deity finally looked up at Tamreta with both of his eyes, both appearing the same normal hue they normally were. His one eye having gone back to it's normal appearance after he had learned enough about the journals.
